Nickelodeon’s ‘Noggin’ Presents: Play Along Videos Details

Nickelodeon has created an innovative, pioneering process and a suite of technology that advances a state of the art experience for interactive video. We developed our own authoring tool, customer experience, and creative process that enable us to produce interactive video at scale. Over 20 years ago, we pioneered the concept of “play-along” linear television with the introduction of iconic call-and-response shows. Now, we are reinventing play-along video for today’s generation of kids and the devices they use.

The goal was to deliver a new interactive content type for kids at a scale unparalleled in the industry. We saw a huge opportunity introducing interactive video through our app. First, it is a huge competitive differentiator. It leverages the interactive capabilities of the device that users have come to expect. Next, it gives new life to a body of our linear content that already suggests interactivity. Finally, it strengthens the “good for your child” claim we implicitly and
explicitly make. Through the different rounds of usability, we identified key moments that were delightful, purposeful, and supported the overall curriculum of the interactive content. We used this knowledge to inform the direction and strategy for interactions throughout the user journey that supported the curricular goals of the content and still had kids feeling like a part of the mission.

With the scale of our pioneering approach, we are delivering on the promise of interactive content. We will now deliver a consistent pipeline of interactive video, which allows more kids to be active participants in more stories. Kids will have the opportunity to interact with more of their favorite characters and help them through more adventures, and because playing enhances the existing educational value of the shows, kids will learn even more along the way.

Why this project is worthy of a UX Award:

Noggin’s Play Along Videos deserve a UX Award for their innovative way of turning television shows into interactive journeys for children. We have introduced a brand new way for children to experience their favorite shows and characters, leaving them wanting more. They feel immersed in the story and like they are a part of the action. We are providing a rewarding experience and sparking creativity by merging two types of media consumption – the first being call and response television, and the other being new emerging technologies.

With the growth of smart devices, children are being introduced to brand new platforms and ways to consume content. Creating television shows that actually rely on the child’s touch and interaction is revolutionary in terms of the way television creators think about content. The future of UX relies on users creating their own world with their own interests at their fingertips. By immersing children into their favorite shows and having them interact with the content, this not only raises the bar for user experience, but it raises the bar for media and content streaming.